From Kate Whitmore
Dated: July 7, 2002
I have had a tough few months here, between the culture and my administration (Peace Corps itself). I spent the last week soul-searching and trying to get out of the funk. I know God has called me here to learn things and to help people. I also know I am here by choice. I need to keep my attitude positive and not let the little things get to me. This is God's work. Who am I to question?
I do feel better, though, that many of my friends who arrived when I did have been struggling with the same issues. At least I am normal!! I continue to be frustrated at our bad Peace Corps management. These are our tax dollars paying people who are not helpful to volunteers, not professional in their positions, and not dedicated to development work. I am sometimes tempted to call Tom Brokaw - is he the one who covers the "Fleecing of America?"
As I said, I am trying not to focus on that, so I will move on to cheerier items.
You asked about my village that gave me a rooster early in my stay here. I continue to work with their women's farming cooperative. They have been in a political battle trying to get "official" cooperative status, which will allow them to sell their items in other cities. The government officials where they live (in the commune of Taabo) say they are not yet an official part of Taabo, and the officials where they used to live (about 50 km away) say they are no longer a part of that community. I think I would be able to get them through that mess (being a white Westerner), but I have not been in Taabo much recently to spend the time helping them.
But the good news for the cooperative is that my home church (Collingwood Presbyterian) has been very supportive of the village through its mission program. The church collected money and clothes for them. So far we have over $1000 for a truck and road paving. And six large boxes of clothing are on their way (lost in the mail at this point) for the village children. Collingwood even has plans to try to send several members to Cote d' Ivoire next summer to help the village build its school. Wouldn't that be fantastic?
In exchange, the villagers have given me many traditional Baouole items to bring home and present to my church. (Baouole is their native ethnic group.) I have some fabric, toys, jewelry, and painting and pottery. When I am in the US at Christmas I will make the formal presentation to the church. Won't that be nice??
You included several newspaper articles which I enjoyed. The one about sorcery on the soccer field did not surprise me at all. It is hard for me to explain how Christianity and sorcery live co-mingled here. Same for Islam and sorcery in the north. It's very interesting. People do not see the two beliefs and conflicting at all.
Churches Taabo, and all of southern Cote d'Ivoire, is most Christian. We celebrated Christmas here. Northern Cote d'Ivoire is most Muslim. Because Taabo has a large immigrant population (invited here in 1975 to help build the hydro- electric plant), we also have lots of Muslims. Tabaski, which was Friday Feb. 22, shut down all of Taabo just as much as Christmas did. In fact, our bus company is run by a groups of Muslims, and I was unfortunate enough to be trying to travel on Tabaski. It wasn't easy.
There is a mosque in Taabo, as well as a Catholic church, Methodist church, and Assembly of God church. The mosque and Catholic church are regular religious-looking buildings. The Methodist and Assemble of God church meet in buildings that look more like houses. All services in the churches are done in French, and the music is a combination of tunes I recognize and African music.
None of that means that people do not believe in and/or practice sorcery here. There is a lot of talk of sorcery, and people truly believe in it's power. In addition, there is a talk of sacred forests and sacred rivers (sacred to an earth god or goddess) which are holdovers from before the population was converted to Islam or Christianity. People here don't see the combination as a conflict at all. (This is from a short piece on religion I wrote in Feb. 2002.)
I am troubled by the proposed ban on Ivorian cocoa because of child slave labor...for one, I am troubled because we really need to see our cocoa on the world market. But I am also troubled because I think the definition of child slave labor is very Western. If a teenager comes to Cote d'Ivoire to earn $1 an day (which is just barely a living wage here), and he had no job prospect in his neighboring home country, is that a bad thing? I guarantee that he would not have been enrolled in school in his home country, and probably had no job opportunities. So his life is really better here, working in the cocoa fields, than it would have been at home. Of course, I cannot agree with plantation bosses who recruit these kids and promise them riches, etc. But we have to remember life here is hard, and Western standards do not apply.
Take for example, the girl next door to me. Tatiana is 11 years old. She probably has three "every day" outfits and one Sunday outfit. Her parents live in a village where there is no school. Because they wanted her to go to school, she is living with her uncle (my next door neighbor). Their house is the same as mine - indoor plumbing and electricity. In exchange for her school tuition, books, uniform, and room & board, Tatiana works hard all day for her uncle's family. When she is not in school, she is ALWAYS cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the uncle's children. I rarely see her playing or studying. To me, this is child slave labor too. But by cultural standards, this is absolutely normal. Young people work very hard for the privilege of being fed, housed, and schooled. Tatiana's life is no different from the most of the 11 year old girls' lives in Taabo.
Actually, this is why libraries have been so effective and popular here. They give young people a chance to get away from the house (where chores are always present) and study. I believe Ii will start a girls camp (once or twice a week) after the library gets going, again, to give he girls a chance to learn and study away from the ever-present chores and parental demands. (Note: Boys work hard too, but they seem to be allowed more freedom, like a soccer game or studying time.) I continue to be thankful that I was born into a Western culture, and think how different my life would have been if I had been born here.
The other article you enclose was about chastity, HIV, and Uganda. How interesting! I think anything that works culturally is a good idea in this fight against AIDS. The numbers in Africa are staggering. And delaying pregnancy for girls has been shown to be better for both the girls and their children. Of course, I do struggle with programs where someone says, We're going to test the girls (for virginity),..., (but) in the case of boys, I guess we will have to trust them." Ouch. There has to be a better way!!! Perhaps something more medically accurate and more equal between the sexes?
I am on page three and have-not even told you much of what I've been doing! I spent two weeks in June, plus this week, plus another in July working with our new volunteers. They arrived June 13. I was pleased to get to spend their first two weeks with them, monitoring and answering a lot of questions. It was fun to remember where I was only a year ago. I've come a long way baby! This year is our first group of Small Business Development volunteers. With my extensive business background, I have been asked to spend a lot of time with the new vols. This week we will talk about Feasibility Studies, and my final week we will talk about Business Plans. I have lots of ideas about what to cover, but haven't really organized them yet. Instead, I am sitting at the computer writing letters!
Also in June I attended a week long workshop on diversity. Seven nearby countries were represented by Peace Corps volunteers and staff. The conference was good... I got some fresh ideas for the diversity workshops that I lead during training. But this place has really changed me...I kept thinking about all the money that had been spent on the conference and how many latrines could have been built for that amount! It is hard to balance the need for internal staff and volunteer training with the need for development work and money to support it.
We here in Cote d'Ivoire have been out of US government money (our easiest to obtain for projects) since April, and won't get anymore until October. That means I have to spend my time and small salary searching for funding at other embassies or organizations, or I can only do project where the locals pay for the whole thing. Since my church is funding the women's cooperative, and my family/friends will fund he library, that is what I decided to focus on. I will do the latrine and pump project if and when the Peace Corps sends us more funding. Since I have been with the trainees so much, I haven't finished my library funding proposal. I am itching to get started on that project, and need to get that proposal turned in!!! You asked about money management...since I am funding through the Peace Corps program (called Peace Corps Partnership), the money is not only tax-deductible on your end, but I control the money on this end. I receive the check , I cash it, and I am responsible for supporting the expenses with receipts. As somewhat of a control freak, I like that system! At least I know no one will run off with the money and leave the library unfinished!
To answer your question about the laws and systems to prosecute people like our old mayor, who cleaned out the city's bank accounts...there are laws, but the general feeling is that the judges would be bribed to side in favor of the mayor, so why bother? That is really tough issue culturally...people don't feel empowered to make changes in the government here, even at the local level. When I suggest that someone talk to his/her city council representative, they don't think it will do any good. When I suggest that they have the power of the vote, they just shrug their shoulders and ask what one person can do. We have that in the US too, but here it feels much, much worse. I hope it will change eventually.
I have typed much too long and am hungry for some lunch. Since I am in the training town again this week, I don't have any food stored in the kitchen. I will have to go walk through the market and find (hopefully) some eggs or rice and beans. Perhaps I will even bump into some of the trainees and will be able to her how things are going for them.
Take good care,
MKate.
PS Would love to know your opinion of the life of my neighbor Tatiana. Is that child slave labor or is it "OK" given the culture?